Find Me at Willoughby Close by Kate Hewitt

Author:Kate Hewitt
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Tule Publishing
Published: 2017-03-13T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

Harriet spent Friday night bingeing on a DVD box set and drinking wine, trying to stave off loneliness. She couldn’t believe she actually missed the constant squabbling, Mallory’s huffy sighs, William’s constant energy, but she did. She missed Mallory’s persistent eye rolls, and William’s relentless wrestling, and Chloe’s snuggles. She missed it all.

She tried to sleep in on Saturday morning but by eight o’clock she gave up and went downstairs, making herself a coffee and taking it out into the garden. It was a lovely spring morning, all lemony light and fresh, dewy grass—sadly they didn’t have any garden furniture. The enormous wooden set from the Old Rectory had been sold along with everything else, but as she perched on the steps by the French windows, Harriet wished they’d kept a few things. Unfortunately in late January, with everything bleak and frozen, she hadn’t considered that she might one day need garden furniture. That she might want it.

She sipped her coffee and tried to ignore the fact that her bum was getting wet, wondering if she could rouse herself to do some gardening or if she should wait until the children returned so they could do it all together, a proper family activity with Chloe scattering seeds willy-nilly, William trampling over everything, and Mallory complaining the whole while. She smiled at the thought.

Eventually, she went inside and showered, and then spent the next few hours tidying up and doing laundry. By lunchtime she was ready for a change of scene, and she pulled on her welly boots and headed out, away from Willoughby Manor, towards the Lea River.

She hadn’t explored much of the immediate area since moving to Willoughby Close, but when the children had been small she’d taken them for walks along the river; she had a distinct memory of William splashing in the shallows and getting soaked while she stood on the banks, Chloe strapped to her chest in a baby carrier, feeling thoroughly fed up.

Now she picked her way along the muddy footpath, enjoying the stillness, the twitter of birdsong and the gentle quacks of a few ducks paddling happy in the water. It was perfectly peaceful, and Harriet tilted her head to the sunlight, wanting only to enjoy this moment to the full. To live in the present, not the mirey past or the uncertain future.

She ended up at the top of the high street, above the school, having crossed the river on a rickety little footbridge she’d forgotten existed. Wychwood-on-Lea had emptied out over the holidays as people went in search of sunshine elsewhere, and so she meandered down the high street, almost feeling like a tourist in her own town.

On impulse she popped into the teashop; it felt like a lifetime ago when she’s stumbled in there to avoid a couple of gossipy mums. Olivia was standing at the till, and she smiled as Harriet came in.

“Hello! I haven’t seen you in a while.”

“I know.” Harriet smiled back as she shed her jacket. “Sorry, I’m tracking mud in, aren’t I? You are open, I hope?”

“Yes, absolutely.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.